Carli Lloyd wins second FIFA best player award

American Carli Lloyd who plays for Houston Dash, delivers a speech after winning the trophy for The Best FIFA Women's Player award during the The Best FIFA Football Awards 2016 ceremony yesterday in Zurich, Switzerland.

ZURICH (AP):

Carli Lloyd of the United States has won her second FIFA best female player award.

Lloyd seemed surprised to retain the prize she first won after an outstanding 2015 Women's World Cup on the title-winning US side.

Still, Melanie Behringer of the Germany team that won the Olympic title in Rio de Janeiro placed third in the voting totals, and five-time winner Marta of Brazil was runner-up.

"I honestly was not expecting this," Lloyd, who captained the US team that exited in the Olympics quarter-finals, said in her acceptance speech.

"I know Melanie did fantastic in the Olympics. (She and Marta are) both so deserving of this award," the Houston Dash forward said.

Lloyd tallied 20.68 per cent of the voting points; Marta got 16.60 per cent; and Melanie Behringer, who retired from national team duty after the Olympics, got 12.34 per cent.

Behringer acknowledged that she was "disappointed" but declined to criticise the result.

Lloyd said that she was "incredibly honoured" to have won the support of her peers in a poll by national team captains and coaches, selected media, and fans voting online.